The present invention generally relates to a cutting device and, more particularly, to a novel and safe cutting device utilizing a replaceable disc blade.
There is known a cutting device, or a knife, which comprises an elongated sheath and a strip of blade slidably housed within the elongated sheath and which has a plurality of equally spaced break-off grooves along which successive portions of the blade strip can be snapped off when they become dull through wear. This type of cutting device, or knife, has achieved commercial success and is now used in a wide range of applications. In addition, this type of cutting device is fairly considered very convenient in view of the fact that a sharp cutting blade can be available at any time merely by breaking a used or worn blade unit off from the blade strip.
However, when it comes to cutting of such a highly flexible material, for example, a sheet of cloth or a film or foil of synthetic resin or resin-metal compound, as is characterized by the fact that, when a cutting edge is applied during cutting operation with or without the use of a ruler which may be used to retain in position the material to be cut, the shape and/or the position of the material being cut tend to be readily destroyed under the influence of a drag force developed by the cutting edge being drawn on the material. Any of currently commercially available cutting instruments, including that type of cutting device which has been referred to above, is of no use in terms of availability for an accurate cut line in the material having been cut.
Moreover, using the above described type of cutting device it is difficult to cut the material to be cut, irrespective of the type thereof, along a curved or substantially zig-zag path, or otherwise. The operator of the cutting device may inadvertently suffer injuries to his finger or fingers.